Last and method of making same



July 3, 1923.

1.460.679 T. W. M NICHOL LAST AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME Filed July 26, 1920 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Inventor: Iheodore Wml'chol,

I C M 4 28 July 3, i923.

. 1.450.679 T. w. MCNICHOL LAST AND METHOD or MAKING SAME Filed July 26, 1920 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Patented July 3, 1923.

UNITED STATES THEODORE W. HdNICHOL, OF SWAMPSCOTT, MASSACHUSETTS.

LAST AND METHOD OF MAKING SAME.

Application fled m 26, 1920. Serial No. 398,936.

To all wlwm it may concern:

Be it known that I, Tmcoooma WAIJTER McNIcnoL, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Swampscott, in the county of Essex and gommonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Im ro vements in Lasts and Methods of Malnng Same, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to lasts and method of remodelling the same, the object of the invention being to provide means for utilizing old lasts or new lasts of old style and resiiaping them to form lasts of the latest sty e. Y Y

The invention consists in taking a last which cannot be used in its existing form and cutting a notch transversely of its too end, inserting into said notch a block of wood and securing it to the body of the last either by glue, inclined dowels or screws but preferably by all of these means and then reshapin the last and block in a suitable shaping athe to form a last of modern st Is.

The invention further consists of a ast reshaped by said method.

The invention further consists in certain novel features of construction and arrangement of parts which will be understood readily by reference to the descriptioni of the drawings and to the claims to be hereinafter given.

For the purpose of illustrating the invention, one preferred form is illustrated in the drawings, this form having been found to give satisfactory and reliable results, although it is to be understood that the various instrumentalities of which the invention consists can be variously arranged and organized, and that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangement and organization of the instrumentalities as herein shown and described except as required by the scope of the appended claims.

Of the drawings:

Figure 1 represents an elevation of an old st le last which it is desired to reshape into a last of modern style.

Figure 2 represents a plan of the toe portion thereof.

Figure 3 represents an elevation of the toe portion of the same after a part thereof has been cut away leaving a transversely extending notch at the forward end of said toe portion.

F igure 4 represents a lan of the toe portion with a block of wood secured thereto.

Figure 5 represents a side elevation of the same.

Figure 6 represents an inverted plan of the same. i

Figure 7 represents an elevation of the reshaped last, and

Figure 8 represents a plan of the toe portion thereof.

Similar characters indicate like arts throughout the several figures of the rawings.

In the drawings, 10 represents the heel part of a last and 11 the fore part thereof,-

these parts being connected by a pivot 12.

While a two-part pivoted last is shown in the drawings, the invention is not limited to this particular form of hinged last or in fact to any form of hinged last but may be applied to a block last or even to a last of any other well-known construction.

As a rule there is very little variation in the form of the heel portions of lasts, most of the variations to conform to new styles being in the fore part.

Lasts are made of the very best maple stock and this stock is becoming more and more costly each year owing to its increasiniscarcity.

s a consequence in producing new lasts it is highly desirable to utilize old lasts and new lasts which have become obsolete owing to the changes in style, thereby making a great saving for the manufacturer.

It has been found possible to do this by taking the old last and placing the same upon a sawing machine and there removing the extreme forward end of the toe part.

.'This operation is preferably performed by two saw cuts at an angle to each other thereby leaving a V-shaped notch 13 extending transversely of the forward end of the fore part 11.

A block 14 having a wedgeshaped end 15 is then secured to the fore part 11 by glue or otherwise with the Wedgeshaped end 15 inserted into the V-shaped notch 13.

When the glue has set and the block is firmly ositioned on the fore part 11, holes are drilled through said block 14 and into said fore part 11 and dowels 16 are inserted into these holes and the inner ends of the dowels 16 are held in position from and movement by means of pins 17 driven through the fore part 11 and through said dowels 16.

The pins 17 aredriven. into the fore part so that their ends will be embedded below the surface thereof so far that they will not interfere with the subsequent reshaping of the last.

Owing to the dowels 16 being inclined outwardly toward the toe of the last the block 14 cannot be removed when the dowels are once inserted.

The body of the block 14 extends consid erably above the toe portion of the fore part 11 thereby providing suflicient stock so that a high toe may be formed on the remodelled last if desired. Likewise the block 14 extends considerably beyond the point where the toe end of the old last was positioned prior to its removal thereb providing means whereby a long pointe toe may be formed in the reshaping of the last.

When the block 14 has been secured in position in the fore part 11 of the last, the projecting ends of the dowels are preferably shaved ofl and the last with the block 14 therein is then placed upon the shaping lathe and turned down to any desired shape.

During this reshaping operation not only the block 14 is turned down but portions of the fore part 11 of the old last so that when the operation is completed a practically new last is the result.

By means of this method an old last or a last of obsolete style may be taken and reshaped with a toe portion which may be longer, wider, thicker, narrower or thinner than the old toe and if desired the spring of the toe may be dropped.

When the last has been reshaped the screws 18 are inserted through the bottom of the last into the tapered end 15 of the block 14.

With the shortage of maple lumber and consequent increase in cost of last blocks, the increase in the price of labor and ad'- vanced cost of all last supplies, lasts formed from new blocks are almost'prohibitive.

By utilizing the body of an old last and remodelling it with a new toe, very little me lo stock is used thus making a great saving in material and consequent saving to the manufacturer.

It is a well known fact that the grain of the wood from which the last is constructed extends lengthwise of said last, and in a last where there is a high toe, the grain would be at a steep angle to the bottom of the fore part.

Consequently the toes are weak and are constantly breaking during the lasting operation, and this is particularly true when the toe rest happens to set back from the toe of the last and the shoe is beaten out by means of a hammer or machine.

The block 14 is made necessarily with the grain of the wood extending substantially lengthwise thereof, or in such a direction that when inserted into the toe of the last, the grain of the wood will be practically parallel with the bottom of the foreart.

p As a consequence, the toes cannot be broken easily and as a matter of fact, the remodelled last is stronger than the original last before remodelling.

It is believed that the operation and many advantages of the invention will be understood readily without further description.

Having thus described my invention, I claim- 1. A remodelled last having a trans versely extending .V-shaped notch in the toe end of the body thereof, the vertex of which is parallel to the sole face and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said last; and a toe. piece secured therein and projecting beyond the walls of said notch.

2. A remodelled last having a transversely extending notch in itstoe end, the vertex of which is parallel to the sole face and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said last, and a toe piece secured therein with its forward end projecting beyond the walls of said notch and of greater thickness than the rear portion thereof positioned in said notch.

3. A remodelled last having a transversely extending notch in its toe end, the vertex of which is parallel to the sole face and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of said last, a toe piece secured therein with its forward end projecting beyond the walls of said notch, and screws extending from the bottom of the last into said too piece.

4. The method of remodelling lasts which consists in cutting a transversely extending notch in the toe of a last with its vertex parallel to the sole face and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the last, inserting therein one end of a block the forward end of which projects beyond the walls of said notch and is of greater thickness than the portion positioned in said notch, scour ing said block to the last, and then reshaping said last and block.

5. The method of remodelling lasts which consists in cutting a transversely extending V-shaped notch in the toe of a last with its vertex parallel to the sole face and perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the last, inserting therein the tapered end of a block the body of which projects considerably beyond the toe of the last and is of greater thickness than the portion positioned in said notch, securing said block to said last, and then reshaping said last and block.

6. The method of remodelling lasts which consists in making two saw cuts transversely of the toe of a last and angularly disposed relatively to each other, removing the material between said saw cuts to form a V-shaped notch extending from side to side of the last and the vertex of which is parallel to the sole face and perpendicular 5 to the longitudinal axis of said last, inserting in said notch the V-shaped' end of a block extending laterally beyond both sides of the last and the body portion of which extends forwardly beyond the walls of said notch; securing said block in said notch; and then reshaping said last and block.

Signed by me at 746-7 Old South Bldg, Boston, Mass, this 24th day of Jul 1920.

THEODORE W. McNIC OL. 

